


In The Spring

by I_need_canon_MikaAni



Series: Seasons [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Starbucks, and their awkward gayness, it's so cute, my awkward gay children, omg, they're so cute, with their awkward gay flirting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-12
Updated: 2015-04-12
Packaged: 2018-03-22 14:51:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3732952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_need_canon_MikaAni/pseuds/I_need_canon_MikaAni
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Spring has arrived. Annie and Mikasa are closer and are just a bit a ways from actually dating. All they need now is a little push. Or Starbucks and an obscene amount of pollen. Either of the will work.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In The Spring

Spring arrives not long after winter. The second season in the series of four starts in late February, and brings with it another arch nemesis to deal with.

Pollen…

It gathers in heaps and piles and mounds. Flying up into the air after sweeping, then falling back down to earth in the exact same position it was in before you attacked it with a broom.

After three unsuccessful weeks of getting rid of the dust, you give in and call your older brother. He and the members of his squad come in after they finished cleaning the bar armed to the teeth with cleaning supplies. (Can you say armed when they don’t have any weapons on them?) Levi stands on your newly spotless welcome mat and looks up at you. He must have just cleaned it… His signature Ackerman silver eyes flashing with muffled excitement at the prospect of a cleaning challenge.

“How long?”                                  

You sigh and step back to reveal the shared house that Armin and Eren abandoned about a week ago. The sight of pollen on and ground is enough to make even Hange flinch and considering the current state of their forensics lab, that’s saying something. Your brother does a pretty good job of hiding his horror, but his fingers tighten on the broom and that’s a dead giveaway that he _needs_ to be cleaning.

“Three weeks…”

He nods. Then he walks into the apartment and plugs in the industrial strength vacuum. His team files in behind him. Petra hands you a ten dollar bill. She smiles as she closes your hand around it.

"Go get a hot chocolate from Starbucks."

Hange gives you a pat on the shoulder as they walk into the apartment. Once inside, they close the door behind them.

The last thing you see is Hange spraying water with deadly accuracy at piles of pollen. An urge to go back in and stop them from cleaning and insisting that you can do it yourself, that you don't need their help fills you invades you. It replaces the blood in your veins as the beating of your heart changes to match the syllables of clean.

Fortunately, Annie comes back from her run (it's more like an all out sprint for ten miles with no stopping) at that exact moment. One look at your face is all it takes for her to understand the situation. Unlike Eren, she's spent more than a few days trying to help you manage the mayhem. She wraps one arm around yours and starts pulling you towards her house.

"Wher-"

"Shower then Starbucks."

"But-"

"Don't argue."

"How a-"

"Money."

"Where did you g-"

"The ten dollar bill Petra gave you."

"How did you know?"

There's no answer.

You stop at her door as she pulls out her keys. Her nimble fingers flick through half a dozen keys before settling on a slim silver one. Annie walks inside, tosses the ring on a nearby table and walking down a hall. She's halfway into a room when she realizes that you're not in the house.

"Get in here."

You shift awkwardly at the entrance. The manners seared into your brain tell you to wait outside for her. Your mind tells you to go in and wait. Your heart is beating too fast for you to process anything other than _Annie. Annie. Annie._

With all the grace of a teenager you take one step forward; so that your toes are touching the door frame, but not in the threshold.

"You _can_ come inside."

Your head snaps up to meet Annie's eyes as you take a step in.

"Right."

She's leaning against the wall in front of the bathroom with her right shoulder. The sound of water drifts out of it. There's a bundle of clothes under her left arm.

_When did you get there, when did you get those, where did you get those, how do you move so fast?_

"Jesus Ackerman. People are going to think you're a vampire."

"Does that mean I sparkle?"

The answer comes out before you can stop it. It’s an almost reference from that one interview you say of Kristin Stewart mocking Twilight. Armin had made you watch it after you and Eren started bashing the actors and actresses during the Twilight marathon.

"Depends on the lighting… and your mood."

Your intended scoff turns into a dropped jaw as Annie gives you a smirk that would make all the panties and boxers at The Scouting Legion drop. She walks into the bathroom and shuts the door. And oh hot _damn_. Are you imagining the sway of her hips, or have they always done that?

* * *

 

"Are you going to stand there staring all day or are you going to order something?"

Annie's voice jerks you out of thought, her arms are crossed and she's glaring at you with twin glaciers. You shiver despite the heat.

"Tall hot chocolate, please."

The cashier, Nanaba, smiles.

"What names?"

"Annie."

"Mikasa."

She scribbles down the names on cups and hands them back to a guy named... Mike. He slips into the process of making the orders with an ease that hints at centuries of practice, even though he can't be any older than his mid thirties.

"That'll be eight dollars and fifty-one cents."

Annie hands over the ten.

_How did you do that?_

"One dollar and fourth nine cents is your change, have a nice day."

"You too."

She walks away as the cashier talks to the next customer-customers. Two boys. You would expect for there to be at least a dozen people here, but it's really not that crowded.

A woman with silver glasses is writing in a journal, occasionally showing her progress to the bald old man sitting across from her. He has a straight back and a neatly groomed mustache and is in pretty good shape for a man of his age, but he's staring out the window in a way that tells you just from a glance that his mind's not really here right now.

A teenager, about your age if you had to guess, half covered in bandages and casts and sitting in a wheelchair is being helped by another boy, probably the same age as he is, with a two tone undercut. Odd hairstyle, but it fits him. You have the sneaking suspicion that they're dating, but you don't ask because that would be rude.

You turn back to look at the table that Annie has found. She's sitting in a chair at a table at just the right angle so that no one can see her by looking in the window, but the light still hits her.

"Mikasa! Annie!"

She looks at you and time flickers. The axis the world spins on slants and the rotation slows so that everything revolves around her. Even the light reflects off her hair to form a halo. Her face and eyes are in the same bored expression as they always are, but her eyes shine just a bit lighter, and you _swear_. You swear that the sun is shining out of her.

Annie quirks an eyebrow at you, and the world rights itself. The rotation speeds up and it's like it never happened. The world no longer revolves around Annie.

Just your world.

_You or me?_

_Me. I'm closer._

"Thank you."

Nanaba throws you another quick smile before running to get the other orders from Mike.

 _She knows_ , you think, she knows what just happened to you but she doesn't say anything.

"How long do you think it'll take Levi to clean your house?"

The question takes you off guard and you fumble for an answer like a second grader fumbling a football.

"He's-he'll be done-"

She's smirking ever so slightly at your stutter behind her latte. Damn that sexy smirk.

"-in a few hours probably."

"Good. Then we've got some time to kill and there's a new movie at the Varsity that I want to watch."

"O-okay what's it called?"

"Pacific Rim."

She stands up and starts walking to the door. You follow her.

What else are you supposed to do?

Hot chocolate still in your hand as she takes a right on Shiganshina Avenue. Is this her way of asking you out on a date? Of course she could just be trying to make the time pass. Make it easier for you to get through the hours that it'll take for Levi to clean.

"So this is a date?"

At the mention of the word date she blushes. It's not a lot, but her cheeks are tinged just a bit pink. Her confidence falters as you smile.

"Yes Ackerman. This is a date."

And just like that she's back in control again. The pink fades and Annie is as calm and collected as ever.

With one small change.

Instead of having both hands in her hoodie pockets, she lets her right hand slip out. It's far away enough from her body to brush against yours.

_Here's an opportunity, now grab it._

With every swing of your arms your hands get closer and closer to actually holding hands. When it does happen, it's not close enough contact to call what you’re doing holding hands. Rather your pinkies are locked and your arms are swinging together in tandem.

Silently you think to yourself that maybe this isn't such a bad day after all.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this story at different points in time, it was a work in progress for about two and a half months, but it’s finally done. Thank gosh. I was going to upload it during Spring Break, but there were some complications… yeah… That aside I managed to finish it and clean it up and by the time that happened it was last night.  
> I hope you enjoyed it! =-)


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